In areas which are subject to extremely high winds, such as coastal areas in the southern portions of the northern hemisphere, one particular type of damages which result to structures, particularly dwelling structures, is the separation of the entire roof structure from the remainder of the building. It has been found that the bulk of instances where a home is totally demolished result from the roof structure parting from the remainder of the house, basically as a unit. This is in contrast to the various pieces of the roof structure (e.g., the shingles, the sheathing, etc.) being ripped off a piece at a time. It has also been noted that modern trailers which are provided with a reinforced encircling rib structure which is attached to a concrete pad upon which the trailer sits, are less likely to be totally demolished than are trailers which are not reinforced and tied down. From this, many governmental units in the affected areas have provided building codes which require that the roof rafters, typically part of a truss structure, be secured to the top plates of the vertical framing by more than the usual nail-down. This may include steel braces at the joint of the rafters with the top plate or at the joint of a ceiling joist portion of a truss with the top plate. This may also include tying the top plate to the studs, the studs to the bottom plate, and the bottom plate to the foundation. It is believed to be true that the effectiveness of such code provisions has been well borne out by the successful reduction of total-demolition damage to homes which have had the additional tie-downs provided in accordance with such codes. However, the codes are applied prospectively, and are not useful in protecting homes or other buildings constructed before the provisions of the code were in effect. Retrofitting older buildings with brackets, braces and plates to secure the roof structure to the vertical framing and/or foundation is extremely difficult, and in most cases not practical.